Elucidating the Factors Affecting the Patient-Centric Usability of Blister Packs for Spherical Capsules

Abstract

Pharmaceutical packaging is essential for enhancing the storage stability of medicine and can improve medication adherence and usability. Despite their widespread use, blister packs can be challenging to use, especially when pushing out the medication. This study investigates how specific cavity characteristics of blister packs can enhance usability for spherical capsules, which are harder to push out than tablets. The findings of this study show that reducing the thickness of the unformed sheet, or the thickness at the top and corners of the cavities, reduces the effort required to push out the capsules. Similarly, for cavities with different shapes, reducing the thickness at the top and increasing the corner radius also eases the push-out process. These insights emphasize the importance of systematic design in pharmaceutical packaging to improve patient medication adherence.